KANNUR,
MAY 5.
The BJP Karnataka State president, Ananth Kumar, has accused the Congress and the CPI(M) of betraying the people of the country with what he calls their rank opportunism and unethical politics of convenience.

Addressing a press conference here today, Mr. Ananth Kumar said that while the Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, during her recent visit in West Bengal had called upon the electorate there to oust the CPI(M) from power for the progress of the State, the CPI(M) veteran, Jyoti Basu, had been reported as having said that his party was working for a Congress-led coalition at the Centre. Terming the stand of the Congress and the BJP as double-talk, he said Mr. Basu owed an explanation to his own party for giving unsolicited support to the Congress leadership. The people of the country, especially those in the State, would see through this `hypocrisy,' he said.

The BJP leader said that over the last one week, many Prime Minister candidates had emerged from the Opposition side, including Ms. Gandhi, Mr. Basu, Laloo Prasad Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Mayawati. ``The people have undergone the trauma of the Governments headed by Charan Singh, Chandra Shekhar, H.D. Deve Gowda and I.K. Gujral and none of them survived more than 10 months,'' he said adding that the people's aspirations were now very clear. ``They have tried and tested the leadership of Mr. Vajpayee,'' he said.

He said the six-year BJP rule had brought economic progress and many amenities such as connectivity. ``The country is progressing with bifocal vision,'' he said adding that efforts had been started to make India a global player. After Pokhran II, the Vajpayee Government could break all the sanctions, he said adding that it had also harnessed human, natural and scientific resources of the nation.

On the political situation in Kerala, Mr. Ananth Kumar said the Congress in the State had become a `Pancha Kauravas'. The Chief Minister, A.K. Antony, reduced himself to becoming the leader of one faction of the party.

He said the Union Minister of State for Railways, O. Rajagopal, who is the BJP candidate in Thiruvananthapuram, had brought in various development schemes to the State. The 2004 elections would bring BJP MPs from the State.